I like the "at least"! Seriously, what would I do without visiting TORn with my morning coffee?

Thanks for your kind words.

And I'll add a shameless plug for my upcoming book, since you mentioned my earlier one. I'm excited about this book because I got to write about hobbits again. Tauris is publishing Hobbits: The Many Lives of Bilbo, Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin about this time next year. I guess you can tell what it's about! The fun part for me was seeing, reading, and attending so many adaptations. "Research" is truly a wonderful thing!

...for the sensitivity and care of your artwork. The virtual feast is laid, steaming on the platters under an open sky, the minstrels strike up the music, the first hobbits dance on the green, and the fireworks have begun to burst--enjoy the party! Life is beautiful and dangerous! Beware! Enjoy!

So here's one (if somebody already asked it in this long thread that I'm dashing through before mass, just say "see above" and I'll be content.)

In the everyday world of noise and distraction, how do you clear your head and get your focus reset to Middle Earth prior to capturing its essence in art? Life is beautiful and dangerous! Beware! Enjoy!

I like your comment about the "family reunions." How true that is! It's been awhile, but you included me in your "extended family" at ELF a few years back. I've always enjoyed your art, and meeting you at ELF was a special treat. I hope you know how much your art enriches all us fans' Tolkien experience.

I'm glad you send your students to TORn, too! Sometimes they think I'm so nerdy (well, I am), but TORn is an amazing resource. I hope we'll be able to compare notes on teaching and writing at another convention.

It is wonderful having you come join this grand party. John Noble? Geez, that is cool. Gee, Garf see if he could stop in later. Heck, who know how long this happening will continue. Besides that, have great fun at the festival:)! Cheers! ''What connects Nature to the spiritual, or requires the presence of the latter? In positive terms, as Alkis Kontos points out, when nature was still largely experienced as integral, alive and active, 'It was the spiritual dimension of the world, its enchanted, magical quality that rendered it infinite, not amenable to complete calculability; spirit could not be quanified; it permitted and invited mythologization.' And I would add, it still is and does.'' Patrick Curry-Defending Middle-Earth-Tolkien: Myth and Modernity - chapter: 'The Sea: Spirituality and Ethics.'

May the grace of Manwë let us soar with eagle's wings! In the air, among the clouds in the sky Here is where the birds of Manwe fly Looking at the land, and the water that flows The true beauty of earth shows With the stars of Varda lighting my way In all the realms this is where I stay In the realm of Manwë Súlimo

I just wanted to add my voice to what everyone else has said here. A lot of people are keeping their fingers crossed for your next project, including me. I am so looking forward to reading your next book! Movie Technical Discussion -- Index

No questions, really - just wanted to add my lists of thanks for the wonderful TORn map you did for Altaira (my copy proudly hangs on the wall in front of me as I type this.) Some TORn sibs and I are planning to come down to NZ next spring, and I know we'd all love to buy you a pint if you're free.

Douglas A. Anderson, well-know Tolkien scholar and author of The Annotated Hobbit, sent this nice message to be posted here!

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Ten years and counting! It's been quite a ride. Congratulations to Calisuri, Corvar, Tehanu and Xoanon, and the extended TOR.n staff! I look forward to following your reporting on Hobbit and other Tolkien-related developments for many years to come.

that I should feel so honored and moved by a post that includes the phrase "thighs and bottom." But I disagree about where the decade goes -- all the important stuff goes into your brain as knowledge, experiences and friendships. Auspicious indeed! Thanks for your message, and all the work you're doing on The Hobbit. If you need a hand, we're all here for you!

"I have not much hope that Gollum can be cured before he dies, but there is a chance of it."

It's so cool that you got to do all that research on something you find personally interesting, and have the talent to write it up in such a clear and informative manner. It's pretty rare that I buy new books, but yours was a must-have. I look forward to hearing about your next project.

"I have not much hope that Gollum can be cured before he dies, but there is a chance of it."